Dog attack

[Bella101]

I'm a new chicken owner, a husky got a hold of one of my chickens, after I got the dog to let go of the chicken I checked her and there was no bleeding just ruffled up feathers. I watched her for awhile to see If she was OK and she seemed fine, she wanted to be away from everyone but other than that seemed ok. I noticed another one of the hens trying to peck at her. So I kept her isolated in the coop for the day, we let the other chickens back in the coop for the night (they were free ranging in the yard) but I got nervous to leave the injured chicken in the coop with the other chickens because I noticed today that she was kind of staying on her own and kept closing her eyes. She was eating and drinking though. But I still was not wanting her to be with the other chickens overnight so I went and got her from the coop at night (she was startled) and brought her in the house where she's now staying in a dog crate. My main concern atm is that when I brought her in, I noticed she was making a gurgling sound. She's no longer making that sound, it was only right after I picked her up and was holding her. Does anyone here know if a chicken makes a gurgle sound if they are startled, or should I be concerned she has some kind of internal injury ( it's been 2 days since the dog attack and she's been eating and drinking as normal) or could she have some kind of respiratory infection? Thank you

 

[nuthatched]

She might have breathed in (aspirated) crop contents, she'll likely be fine but keep an eye on her.

 

[Bella101]

She might have breathed in (aspirated) crop contents, she'll likely be fine but keep an eye on her.

Thank you so much for the reply, could you tell me what aspirated crop contents are

 

[Prince and Pavo]

Hi there! I have had a similar experience when my Rhode Island Red, Ruby, got into my dogs’ cage and they pinned her down and were pulling out her feathers . They were not trying to hurt her, however it was a traumatic experience and after rescuing her she stayed in the coop for the rest of that day and most of the next. She was doing the same things you mentioned except for the gurgling, but she went back to normal soon after. I wouldn’t worry about that. The gurgling sound, however, (from my understanding) may be a rib poking her lung, causing her to make that sound. Unless someone else has more knowledge on the subject or a better solution, you may want to see a vet soon. Best of luck on pinpointing the problem and I hope she gets better!!

 

[nuthatched]

Thank you so much for the reply, could you tell me what aspirated crop contents are

The crop is the first step of digestion for birds, it holds food so they can digest it later at their leisure, its that big lump on their chest. So whatever they've been eating and drinking.
She'll likely be just fine.

 

[Bella101]

The crop is the first step of digestion for birds, it holds food so they can digest it later at their leisure, its that big lump on their chest. So whatever they've been eating and drinking.
She'll likely be just fine.

Thanks so much! So fat she's still acting normal and adjusted well back with the flock. BTW I love your profile pic!